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Wednesday, February 28, 2018

Swoon-Worthy Characters of YAtopia

To wrap up our swoon-worthy month, a couple YAtopians so kindly gave us a peak into what makes their characters swoon-worthy.

Emily Moore's swoon-worthy character is named Vaku. Here's what she shared with us:

Vaku the desert elf rebel leader offers readers many opportunities to love him. Upon first meeting my main character Samana, he offers to help her rescue a friend against impossible odds, cleans her wounded hands, and feeds her before she disappears.

Two years later, they reunite. She accidently kills him with her unpracticed magic and revives him with the same magic. Despite this, Vaku offers a comedy relief to Samana’s serious and pessimistic character, often teasing her with passages from the Great Essence’s prayer when she is obviously not exemplifying them.

His fierce protective instincts for Samana reveal themselves in sacrificial ways: leaving the rebellion seat to go with her to the enemy’s cliff city, degrading himself to a servant of the household that he despises, giving Samana his beloved knife and teaching her self-defense, and shaving his unique red hair in an effort to blend in and stay close to Samana. Lastly, battle scars are sexy; Vaku’s amputated hand lends him a broken quality that makes his easy-going nature that much more endearing. I’d call Vaku incredibly swoon worthy!

An excerpt from my W.I.P. “Samana’s Flair”:

"Don't you dare try to get into the Holding Place. You will get yourself trapped inside," Vaku predicted, shaking his finger playfully at her.

"Don't tell me what I can't and can do!" Samana snapped, widening her nostrils. How dare he. Just like all the other wonderers she’d ever known besides Dimerez. Determined to tell her who she was and where she didn’t belong. She wasn’t a child.

"I'm just saying, me and the cart might not be there to hide you next time," Vaku jested with a snicker.

Samana jumped to her feet with a snarl.

"I don't need you or anyone else to tell me what to do. I will make it on my own. Thanks for the bread," she huffed, stomping further down the path toward the Chief’s Walk. The wide road wound out across the desert toward Benami’s farms and rock formations.

"Don't be like that," Vaku said, following her. "What are you so mad for?"

Samana paused to look back at him. The flickering of fire on the yucca window coverings of the surrounding pueblos only slightly illuminated Vaku's grin and raised eyebrow. She almost returned the smile, but instead let out an anger-diminishing breath. Shaking her head, she mumbled, "I have to go."

"May you walk gently!" Vaku called after her as the night's bitter-cold air singed her skin.

Thank you for sharing with us, Emily! If you want to connect with Emily Moore, you can find her here:Email at emilygmoorewriter@yahoo.comFacebookTwitterBlog/Website

Next we have Chris's swoon-worthy character named Stefan. Here's what he shared with us: My most swoon-worthy character is 18-year-old Stefan from my YA Fantasy novel IN THE NAME OF MAGIC, which is the first book in a trilogy, and is forthcoming from NineStar Press this June. Stefan is the main character's love interest.17-year-old Maximillian must offer shelter to his non-magical best friend (Katherine) while balancing his budding relationship with the evil queen's estranged younger brother, Stefan, in the backdrop of a contemporary fantasy Earth-like country plagued by a totalitarian monarchy.

Stefan is swoon-worthy because of his mysterious personality when readers are first introduced to him in Chapter 1 upon him meeting the main character (Maximillian). Stefan is evasive, yet I was careful for him not to be one-dimensional. He doesn't use his past to justify bad decisions; he's just damaged because of his past toxic family dynamics. Stefan also wears a half-mask for a third of the book, which is a physical symbol of his vulnerability.

Furthermore, Stefan is swoon-worthy because of how he always gives his boyfriend, Maximillian, the benefit of the doubt--even when some people might not. Including when Maximillian fibs about the real reason he agrees to a weekend getaway with Stefan.

Thank you for sharing Stefan with us, Chris! Keep your eyes peeled for IN THE NAME OF MAGIC coming in June 2018. Have you written a swoon-worthy character? Tell us what makes them swoon-worthy in the comments!

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